|
More About Passerines - Other ...
|
A passerine is a bird of the giant order Passeriformes. More than half of all species of bird are passerines. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines are one of the most spectacularly successful vertebrate orders: with around 5,400 species, they are roughly twice as diverse as the most successful of the mammal orders, the Rodentia.
The group gets its name from the Latin name for the House Sparrow, Passer domesticus.
Many passerines are songbirds and have complex muscles to control their syrinx; all of them gape in the nest as infants to beg for food.
The order is divided into two suborders, Tyranni, and Passeri (oscines). Oscines have the most control of their syrinx muscles and are true songbirds (though some of them, such as the crow, do not sound like it). Most passerines are smaller than typical members of other avian orders.
The evolutionary history of and relationships among the passerine families remained rather mysterious until around the end of the 20th century. Many passerine families were grouped together on the basis of morphological similarities which, it is now known, are the result of convergent evolution, not a close genetic relationship. For example, the "wrens" of the northern hemisphere, of Australia, and of New Zealand all look very similar and behave in similar ways, and yet belong to three far-flung branches of the passerine family tree: they are as unrelated as it is possible to be while yet remaining Passeriformes.
Much research remains to be done, but a series of biochemical studies are gradually revealing a clearer picture of passerine origins and evolution. It is now thought that the early passerines evolved in Gondwana at about the time that the southern supercontinent was breaking up. This led to the Tyranni and, a little later, to a great radiation of forms in Australia-New Guinea (the Passeri or songbirds). A major branch of the passerine tree, the Passerida (or sparrow-like forms), emerged either as the sister group to another (the Corvida, or crow-like birds), or more likely as a subgroup of the Corvida, and reached the northern hemisphere, where there was a further explosive radiation of new species. Since then, there has been extensive mixing, with northern forms returning to the south, southern forms moving north, and so on.
|
|
Taxonmony
|
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family:
|
|
Source: Wikipedia Read more about Passerines - Other
|
|
|
VIDEO CLIPS
|
White-tailed Rubythroat
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
A male singing on the top of a tree. Kazakhstan (Monotypic species).
|
White-tailed Rubythroat
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
A male flying from the top of a tree. Kazakhstan (Monotypic species).
|
Bluethroat
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
A male perched on a tree, singing. Lier, Belgium (ssp cyanecula).
|
Oriental Magpie-Robin
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
A male bobbing its tail. Keoladeo National Park, Rajasthan, India (ssp erimelas).
|
Oriental Magpie-Robin
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
A male perched on a branch. Bandhavgarh National Park, Madhya Pradesh, India.
|
Capped Wheatear
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
An adult walking on the grass. Yzerfontein, South Africa (ssp pileata).
|
Capped Wheatear
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
An adult flicking its wings. Yzerfontein, South Africa (ssp pileata).
|
Isabelline Wheatear
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
An adult walking on the ground. Kazakhstan (Monotypic species).
|
Eurasian Treecreeper
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
A bird on the trunk of a Conifer. Scotland (ssp britannica).
|
Orange-breasted Sunbird
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
An adult perched on a Heath. Cape Point, Cape Town, South Africa (Monotypic species).
|
Orange-breasted Sunbird
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
An adult perched on a branch in strong wind. Cape Point, Cape Town, South Africa (Monotypic species).
|
Eastern Olive Sunbird
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
An adult calling and feeding. Cape Vidal, St. Lucia, South Africa (ssp olivacina).
|
Malachite Sunbird
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
An adult singing in a bush. Cape Point, South Africa (ssp famosa).
|
Malachite Sunbird
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
An adult singing in a bush. Cape Point, South Africa (ssp famosa).
|
Northern Double-collared Sunbird
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
A close-up of a male, held in the hand. Bioko (ssp preussi).
|
Northern Double-collared Sunbird
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
A male perched on a branch. Bioko (ssp preussi).
|
Cape Sugarbird
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
Two females on a Protea, one of which is singing and then flying away. Sir Lowry´s Pass, South Africa (Monotypic species).
|
Cape Sugarbird
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
A male on the top of a Protea and then flying away. Sir Lowry´s Pass, South Africa (Monotypic species).
|
Asian Pied Starling
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
An adult feeding on the ground and flying away. Peacock Island, Guwahati, Assam, India (ssp sordidus).
|
Brahminy Starling
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
An adult walking and feeding. Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur, India (Monotypic species).
|
Brahminy Starling
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
An adult walking and feeding. Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur, India (Monotypic species).
|
Rosy Starling
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
An adult in summer plumage on a rock. Kazakhstan (Monotypic species).
|
Rosy Starling
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
A large group amongst the rocks. Kazakhstan (Monotypic species).
|
Black-bellied Glossy-Starling
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
An adult drinking water and flying away. Mkuzi Nature Reserve, Mkuze, South Africa (ssp corruscus).
|
Superb Starling
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
An adult singing. Amboseli National Park, Kenya (Monotypic species).
|
Superb Starling
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
An adult singing. Amboseli National Park, Kenya (Monotypic species).
|
Red-billed Oxpecker
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
Delousing a Buffalo. Amboseli National Park, Kenya (Monotypic species).
|
Red-billed Oxpecker
WMV View Movie
Internet Bird Collection
An individual perching on zebras. Amboseli National Park, Kenya (Monotypic species).
|
Yellow-billed Oxpecker
0.640MB MOV View Movie
Creatas
Yellow-billed oxpecker feeding off large animal
|
Brown Thrasher
MOV View Movie
Pat's Backyard BirdCam
Brown Thrasher
|
Eastern Kingbird
MOV View Movie
Pat's Backyard BirdCam
Eastern Kingbird
|
Western Kingbird
MOV View Movie
Pat's Backyard BirdCam
Western Kingbird
|
Cedar Waxwing
MOV View Movie
Pat's Backyard BirdCam
Cedar Waxwing
|
Golden Breasted Starling
WMV View Movie
Honolulu Zoo
Birds feeding
|
Bluethroat
AVI View Movie
Vogelkundliche Beobachtungsstation Untermain e.V. Frankfurt am Main
Aufgenommen mit demselben großen Objektiv aus 15m Entfernung bei Leeheim nördlich vom Kühkopf
|
Common Starling
AVI View Movie
Vogelkundliche Beobachtungsstation Untermain e.V. Frankfurt am Main
Vor Begeisterung schlägt er mit den Flügeln
|
|
